Oligofructose and inulin for chronic inflammatory bowel disease
What it found
In animal models of colitis, prebiotics such as oligofructose and inulin have shown benefit.
Studies in people are emerging and have shown promise.
What they found
Studies in people
Probiotics in IBD
Probiotic bacteria have health-promoting effects when ingested and have shown efficacy in ulcerative colitis and refractory pouchitis.
Animal and lab studies
Benefit in animal colitis
Studies using prebiotics, especially beta-fructan oligosaccharides, for chronic intestinal inflammation have shown benefit in animal models of colitis.
Studies in people and animals
Human studies emerging
Studies using these prebiotics alone or in combination with probiotics are emerging and have shown promise.
Other findings
How prebiotics work
Prebiotics are nondigestible dietary oligosaccharides that affect the host by selectively stimulating growth, activity, or both of selective intestinal bacteria.
Easier to give
Prebiotics are easy to administer and, unlike probiotic therapy, do not require giving large amounts of live bacteria.
What the authors conclude
“Studies using prebiotics, especially beta-fructan oligosaccharides, for the treatment of chronic intestinal inflammation have shown benefit in animal models of colitis.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say these dietary therapies could lead to novel treatments for these chronic debilitating diseases.
- They note that interest in the prophylactic and therapeutic potential of inulin, oligofructose, and other prebiotics has grown for patients with or at risk of IBD.
How it was done
Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis affect up to 500 per 100,000 people in the Western world. The authors suggest these diseases come from a lack of tolerance to gut bacteria in people who are genetically susceptible.
The paper reviews studies that used prebiotics, especially beta-fructan oligosaccharides, alone or with probiotics, in animal models of colitis and in newly emerging human studies.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- Most of the benefit described comes from animal models of colitis, which cannot show what happens in people.
- The human studies are only emerging, so it is too early to know how well these prebiotics work in people.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by CIHR (from the PubMed record).
- Authors work at
- University of Alberta, Canada
The paper
- Title
- Inulin and oligofructose in chronic inflammatory bowel disease
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Leenen CH, Dieleman LA (2007). Inulin and oligofructose in chronic inflammatory bowel disease. The Journal of nutrition. doi:10.1093/jn/137.11.2572SPubMed 17951505DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error